Potter park a rival for Magic Kingdom

Pottermania is supposed to be winding down. The final 784-page tome in the series has been published. Shooting for the last movie has wrapped up.

By Michael BarbaroN.Y. Times News Service

ORLANDO, Fla. | Pottermania is supposed to be winding down. The final 784-page tome in the series has been published. Shooting for the last movie has wrapped up. And J.K. Rowling herself recently sent a text to Daniel Radcliffe, the actor who plays her boy wizard, with a message that was unmistakable: It’s over. But try telling that to the throngs at the new Harry Potter theme park here, where people are routinely turned away at the gate because of capacity crowds. Never mind long lines for rides inside; there are waits as long as two hours just to enter the Ollivanders merchandise shop, where staffers struggle to keep the shelves stocked with Potter-phernalia. The must-have Florida trinket these days is not a set of mouse ears. It’s a $30 wizard’s wand. “It was a bit expensive, but I had to have it,” said Steven Butler, 19, who flew down from Canada to visit the park, inside the Universal Orlando Resort here, and described the experience as “totally overwhelming.” The unexpected, turbocharged success of the $265 million Potter playland has not only given a new bounce to Rowling’s literary creation, it has also ignited a friendly hometown rivalry between Universal and Walt Disney World. For decades, Disney has ruled this theme-park-flecked peninsula — and the hearts and minds of its “I’m going to Disney World!” tourists — without a serious challenge. But judging by the swarms, it seems that many of them are, in fact, going to the Harry Potter park. Since the attraction opened a few months ago, Universal’s overall attendance for its parks here has surged by a million people, hitting record levels. Industry trade groups have showered it with prestigious awards. Local hotels are now offering Harry Potter packages, with promises of special gifts.Even veterans of the theme park industry are arching their eyebrows.“Up until now, nobody ever said this or that is better than Disney,” said Duncan Dickson, a former Disney executive who teaches theme park management at the University of Central Florida. “The Hulk coaster at Universal is great. Manta, at SeaWorld, is very good. But it’s not better than anything at Disney.” And the Harry Potter park? “This is better,” he said.Mickey and Minnie are not exactly running scared. Disney World remains by far the No.1. lure in the region, drawing on its renowned attractions and a cultural legacy that remains the envy of the much smaller SeaWorld, Wet ’n Wild, Holy Land Experience and, yes, Universal. Even so, some see signs that the resort is a bit rattled by the upstart down the road. Soon after Universal opened the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, Disney abruptly stopped disclosing attendance for individual theme parks, in a move that some analysts said would spare it potentially unflattering head-to-head comparisons with Universal. (Disney said it was part of sweeping changes to how its various businesses report their performance and was unrelated to Universal.)“Harry Potter is drawing guests away from the mouse house, and Disney still has no answer lined up,” wrote John Frost, an influential Disney blogger and an admitted fan of the company’s theme parks. “That’s very troubling.” Disney executives scoff at talk of Universal as a competitor, saying their real rivals are entire cities, like Las Vegas. Besides, they say, those who fly to Orlando for Harry Potter will inevitably make their way to Disney.“We welcome Harry Potter to Central Florida,” said Michael Griffin, a Disney vice president. “Because experience has shown us that any new offering in this market helps draw additional visitors to our resort.” Disney executives describe themselves as admirers; the president of Disney World, Meg Crofton, who toured the Potter park, sent a congratulatory letter to her counterpart at Universal. And they may take heart from the fact that not everyone is fawning. After waiting two and a half hours to reach the door of Ollivanders a few days ago, members of the Cross family from Boca Raton, Fla., felt the sting of letdown. “It wasn’t that interesting,” said Kaylee, 15. “It was a little cheesy.” Her cousin, Gabriel Machado, said he preferred Disney World. “I grew up on it,” he said. Loyal readers, of course, find ways to excuse any unpleasantness. Butler, the 19-year-old from Canada, had little patience for those who grumbled about crowded stores in Hogsmeade on a recent morning. “Yeah, people are jammed in there,” he said. “But that’s exactly how it is in the book, too.”